ACB announces new player selection rules

KABUL (Pajhwok): After some complaints, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) on Sunday announced some new rules for selection of players.

Chief selector Nawroz Mangal, ACB's High Performance Programme Manager, Basheer Stanekzai and members of the selection committee Abdul Wali Amin and Ahmad Shah Sulemankhel announced the ACB’s eligibility and selection criteria at a press conference.

The new rules were announced for all the four national teams – the national side, Afghanistan-A team, Afghanistan emerging team and the under-19 team.

Mangal said only those players would be selected for the national teams who met the minimum set of requirements.

He added fitness, discipline and performance were three most important points for a player’s selection and those players who performed well in the emerging team would be considered for selection in the A team

He further said a player needed to do practice 300 days annually for two consecutive years and it should be verified by the relevant club, association, provincial team or region.

They would also need to provide their National ID cards or passport as a proof of identity. The under-19 players must prove Afghanistan citizenship or provide birth certificate for that matter.

He pointed out that contracts would be given to players who had played in the Shpageeza League, Ghazi Amanullah Khan Regional One-Day (List-A) Tournament or Ahmad Shah Abdali First Class (Four-day) Tournament.

On other the hand, Zubair Babakarkhel, a cricket expert, said most of the time ACB officials did not follow such rules but hoped the new rules would be implemented.